SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — U.S. Navy Mocked for Photo of Commander With Rifle Scope Mounted Backwards. JWR’s Comments:  Perhaps the Navy should stick to their time-proven M14 deck rifles with iron sights. Thankfully, our potential opponents have much bigger guns and missiles to worry about, and the Navy handles those with deadly competency. o  o  o …



Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — April 16, 2024

April 16, 1746: Battle of Culloden, the last battle on British soil: Royalist troops under the Duke of Cumberland defeat the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart. The Jacobite Rising — which began a year before — was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. April 16th is the birthday of two notable novelists– the late J. Neil Schulman (pictured) and Samuel Youd. Agorist-Libertarian activist J. Neil Schulman (born April 16, 1953, died 2019) was best known as author of the novel Alongside Night. The late Samuel Youd (born …


Upcoming ATF Rule Will Ban Most Private Gun Sales

The ATF’s new re-definition of “Engaged in the Business” of selling firearms is expected to go into effect on or about May 15th. The ATF’s Final Rulemaking was announced on April 8, 2024.  Ignoring the weight of public comment, and ignoring logic, this new set of rules (see text at the ATF website) could make advertising and selling just one gun at a profit without a FFL a felony criminal offense.  Even worse, it shifts the burden of proof from the government to individuals. In effect, you will be assumed to be guilty unless you can prove that you made …


SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, an examination of the much-publicized  “Idaho ISIS” case. (See the Idaho section.) Idaho FBI arrests Idaho 18-year-old for ‘violent plot’ to attack churches on behalf of ISIS, Justice Department says. (A hat tip to reader C.B. for the link.) Charging documents are here. This article …



Preparedness Notes for Monday — April 15, 2024

On April 15, 1989, a small group of students initiated a pro-democracy protest on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The death of reformer Hu Yaobang triggered the demonstrations, which grew in size and were brutally dispersed in the Tiananmen Square Massacre on June 4. April 15th is traditionally Tax Day, but I prefer to remember it as Roy Clark‘s birthday. He was born April 15, 1933. April 15th, 1912, is the anniversary of the sinking of the “unsinkable” Titanic. 1,517 people lost their lives on the maiden voyage. As research into the incident has progressed over the last 100 years, it …


Recipe of the Week: Poverty Soup

The following simple recipe for “Poverty Soup” — a hamburger-vegetable soup is from SurvivalBlog reader F.C.. It serves four adults. To save money, home-grown tomatoes and vegetables can be used instead, if you are a veggie gardener. Ingredients 1 to 1-1/2 lbs of ground beef (or venison, or ground turkey) 1 can (10 oz) diced tomatoes and green chilies (or Rotel) 16 oz. package of frozen mixed vegetables 6-8 potatoes, peeled and diced to spoon size 1 small onion diced, or equivalent in dehydrated onion flakes. 6 beef bouillon cubes 8 cups water Salt, to taste Pepper to taste Directions …


SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic is a map that shows States with the Highest and Lowest Per Capita State Income Taxes.  Note that this map uses data from 2015. Taxes have increased substantially since then, but the relative differences between the states are still about the same. (Graphic courtesy of Maptitude / Caliper.com.) The thumbnail image below is click-expandable, for detailed viewing.       — Please send your graphic ideas to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.



Preparedness Notes for Sunday — April 14, 2024

On April 14, 1902, James Cash Penney opened his first store, The Golden Rule Store, in Kemmerer, Wyoming. His enterprise eventually grew into a large chain of J.C. Penney stores. — On this day in 1865, just after the effective end of the American Civil War, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth while attending a production at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and died the next morning. — On April 14, 1828 Noah Webster published An American Dictionary of the English Language; based on the principle that word usage should evolve from the spoken language, the …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: The Clowns in D.C. Claim That The Federal Budget is “Sustainable” With One Trillion Dollars in New Debt Added Every 100 Days. And $870 Billion Just in Interest Payments in 2024 News Links: The U.S. national debt is rising by $1 trillion about every 100 days. Interest Costs on The National Debt. For comparison, the planned combined U.S. Military budget for 2024 is $842 billion — which is less than the national debt interest payments that will be made in 2024. — Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee; and he would not that any man should know it. For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him. And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way? But they held their peace: for by the way …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — April 13, 2024

On April 13, 1943, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial was dedicated in East Potomac Park on the south bank of the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C..  Jefferson was born April 13, 1743. (He died on July 4, 1826 just a few hours before the death of John Adams. How patriotic of both of them to pass away on the Fourth of July.) — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 112 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not. Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations, and didst divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan. Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it. So the children went in and possessed …